Víctor Valdés, Carlos Puyol, Xavi, Andrés Iniesta, Lionel Messi, Thiago Alcântara, Jonathan dos Santos, Marc Bartra, Sergio Busquets, Pedro, Martín Montoya, Isaac Cuenca, Andreu Fontàs and Marc Muniesa. All members of Barcelona’s first team squad and all players who came through the ranks of Barcelona’s second team before being promoted. That’s fourteen players who have been brought up on the Barcelona way of playing and never left.
So, you would expect the Spanish Second Division side to play pretty much the same way as the senior side, all short passes and quick movement, playing more triangles than the Hallé Orchestra.
This will, without doubt, be Bolton’s sternest test of the preseason. The win at Tranmere showed that at least one player can score goals, but the emphasis tonight should be more on midfield and defence than the forward line.
There aren’t many teams in The Championship that will attempt to pass their way through the midfield, indeed there is every chance that we may be one of the few that do, and this will give Owen Coyle the chance to see if his midfield are up to the challenge.
Vital Quotes:
Not many quotes coming out of T’Reebok before the game, the official site’s preview focusing more on Benik Afobe’s friendship with Barcelona’s Gerard Deulofeu. Where Deulofeu will be putting Afobe’s Bolton shirt in his house when they have swapped it, one can only imagine.
Bolton Wanderers Team News:
Other than David N’Gog’s bad back and Stuart Holden’s ongoing injury, it’s a pretty much full strength team for Bolton’s final preseason game.
Player to watch: Benik Afobe
His hat trick at Tranmere has marked Afobe as a player who may be the answer to our goalscoring woes, but it will be interesting to see how he copes with a more technically adept defence.
FC Barcelona ‘B’ Team News:
Look, I’m not a miracle worker. Maybe some of the players, who have been based in Bolton, have been kept up by a bevvy of local beauties, a la Usain Bolt and the Swedish Handball team. Maybe…..
Player to watch: Gerard Deulofeu
Let’s go for Afobe’s friend, hey? Was brought down for a penalty at Huddersfield and converted it himself. Has been linked with QPR and Liverpool, but we all know about those clubs respective scattergun approaches to transfers. Can play as a winger and striker, has made one appearance for the senior team but has nineteen caps for the Spanish U-19 team, so must have some quality. Expect him to get a lot of the ball.
Match Facts & Stats
Surprisingly, Bolton haven’t played Barcelona in a competitive fixture before, but have played two Spanish teams in the UEFA Cup. A 1-1 group home draw against eventual winners Sevilla in 2005-06 and a 1-0 aggregate victory over Athletico Madrid in 2007-08 that saw Sergio Aguero spit out more than his dummy. Bless.
Match Prediction:
Well, 2-0 is the obvious result as Barcelona have no answer to SKD bulldozing his way through them all.
Next Fixtures:
The kids are at Accrington on Monday and then it all kicks off, both literally and figuratively, at Tuff Dour next Saturday.